Lynne Elder, an IS data services senior in the Institutional Research department, has been named the recipient of the STAR Award for December 2008.

Elder was nominated by Marge Bekkers, an IS system development services senior in Applications Programming. The nomination of Elder follows:

“Lynne has and continues to work tirelessly during our recent major conversion from the UWO legacy Personnel Data Base (PDB) on the IBM mainframe computer to the Madison IADS system. Our only access to the IADS employee information for reporting and various extracts is via the InfoAccess Data Warehouse views and Hyperion
queries. Lynne works diligently to determine where, and even if, information previously obtained from the PDB is available in the InfoAccess views.

“This task has been especially frustrating because of inaccessibility to the IADS information and unavailability of information about any data manipulation done between IADS and the InfoAccess data warehouse views. Despite these obstacles, Lynne keeps trying to provide various functional offices the reports and extracts they need.

“The IBM mainframe computer has been gone since March 12. Lynne’s knowledge about the employee information and the InfoAccess Data Warehouse has, no doubt, increased since the conversion from the PDB to the IADS system.

“With the PDB, various offices relied on Information Technology (IT) staff — specifically Administrative Computing — for whatever information they required, whether it be a report or an extract file. An example that many are likely familiar with are the various employee e-mail lists that have been widely used since their inception in 2001. The PDB had been the source for identifying the type of employee (e.g., faculty, academic staff, classified, LTE, instructional, non-instructional). Through Lynne’s efforts, the availability of these employee mailing lists was uninterrupted when the source of information became IADS and the InfoAccess Data Warehouse.

“New UWO systems have since been designed/developed which require that some employee information, not available through IADS and the InfoAccess Data Warehouse, be stored locally in the UWO Oracle database utilizing the PeopleSoft software. An example is the Campus Directory. As part of that development, Lynne’s Hyperion extracts from the InfoAccess Data Warehouse is instrumental in maintaining the UWO Oracle information to avoid as much “dual entry” as possible by the Human Resources (HR) office. One extract specifically maintains the employee “crosswalk” between the PeopleSoft “EMPLID” and the IADS “Person ID” — which is what HR requires every employee enter on their timecard. Any reports/extracts done are more useful if the pertinent identifying field (e.g., Person ID) is available rather than replying solely on the name.

“Lynne’s cheerful smile and willingness to help in any way she can, coupled with her attitude to take on these challenges, is what make her a STAR and most deserving of the Classified Staff STAR Award.”

Winners of the STAR Award receive a framed certificate, a reserved parking space for one month and a gift from University Books & More. The award for exceptional performance is presented each month to a member of the classified staff who has worked at least six months at UW Oshkosh.
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